Base Stats (Wild Lv150)
| Stat | Base Value | Per Level (Wild) | Per Level (Tamed) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health | 500 | +100 | +5.4% |
| Stamina | 200 | +20 | +10% |
| Oxygen | 800 | +80 | +10% |
| Melee Damage | 100% (35 base) | +5% | +1.7% |
Taming Guide
| Food | Amount (Lv150, 1x) | Time | Effectiveness |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spoiled Meat | 20+ | ~45min | +95% |
| Raw Fish Meat | 35+ | ~60min | +80% |
Key Features
Honestly the Sarco has a few things going for it that make it one of my favorite amphibious mounts in the game and the first thing you gotta know about is the amphibious combat I mean this thing has equal speed and damage on land and in water which is pretty much unheard of no other creature matches this versatility for swamp and river biomes ngl it's kinda broken in the right hands then there's the grab attack which is just so good honestly right click grabs small creatures and humans and you can even dismount riders which is hilarious and then drag your prey into the water for drowning damage I've done this so many times to unsuspecting players tbh and the panic is absolutely worth it. Also the underwater breathing is seriously impressive extended oxygen makes the sarco ideal for underwater exploration you can basically stay submerged for minutes without worrying about anything literally just cruising around down there I love it. Then there's the ambush bite which is maybe the most underrated part of the whole kit you attack from water with a damage bonus on that first hit and if you use the reeds and the water surface for stealth approaches you can absolutely wreck things before they even know you're there imo it's the kind of thing that makes you love this croc and honestly after a few hours with one you'll never want to use anything else for swamps and rivers and all that. Seriously.
Strategy Guide
Okay so for passive taming you basically equip spoiled meat in your last hotbar slot and approach the sarco slowly I mean really slowly because if it notices you you gotta freeze completely until it calms down you know that tense moment where it just stares at you and you're praying it doesn't aggro and then when it gives you that passive expression you walk up and feed it but honestly the timing of this whole thing is kinda tricky. And lemme tell you the Sarco is literally the king of the swamp biome like nothing else even comes close tbh use it to harvest swamp resources and hunt titanoboas and escape from those annoying kaprosuchus ambushes that always get me when I'm not paying attention you know the ones where you're just minding your own business and suddenly you're in a kapro's mouth and you hate your life. Anyway one more thing I've learned the hard way you can park tamed sarcos around your water based bases and they patrol both the shoreline and underwater approaches automatically which deters raiders pretty effectively or at least gives you enough time to react when someone tries to swim in or whatever sometimes they just get stuck on rocks but who knows it works most of the time
Step-by-Step Passive Taming Walkthrough
Passive taming a Sarco is one of those things that sounds easy but can go wrong fast if you don't prep and lemme tell you I've died to this so many times before I figured out the right way to do it. So here's exactly how I do it first put spoiled meat in your last hotbar slot the zero slot you need about 25 to 30 spoiled meat for a 150 on 1x rates maybe more if your timing is off because the feeding intervals can be weird and honestly spoiled meat stacks slowly so start collecting it a day or two before you plan to tame and I mean actually plan ahead don't be like me and show up with 8 spoiled meat thinking that's enough because it's definitely not then you're just standing there looking stupid while the sarco ignores you. Ugh.
Approach the Sarco from the side or behind never head on because if it sees you directly and does that aggro animation you gotta stop moving completely like don't even twitch the mouse I'm serious the Sarco will stare at you for a few seconds and then go back to neutral and that's your window walk up slowly hit E to feed then immediately back away. That simple. But don't sprint because sprinting triggers the aggro again just calmly walk backward like you're not even bothered and the sarco will stay chill I've found that moving with purpose but slowly is kinda the sweet spot here ngl it took me like five failed attempts to figure that out and honestly the first time I got it right I was so relieved I literally sat there for a minute just breathing. Worth it.
The feeding interval is about every 30 seconds and you'll see a visual cue when it's ready to eat again it kinda tilts its head and opens its mouth slightly and if you miss the window no big deal it'll come around again. Sort of. The whole tame takes about 45 minutes for a 150 so bring a chair or something because you're gonna be standing around a lot and for the love of god clear the area of piranhas and other sarcos first nothing ruins a passive tame faster than getting jumped by a second Sarco while you're focused on the first one I've had this happen twice and both times I wanted to uninstall the game like literally rage quit and didn't play for a week. So learn from my pain and just clear everything out before you start tbh it's the most important step and most people skip it then they come crying about how their tame got ruined etc etc you get the idea. Yeah.
Best Uses: PvE vs PvP
In PvE the Sarco shines as a swamp and river transport and honestly it's hands down the best creature for navigating areas where land meets water you know those spots where you're constantly dismounting to swim across a river Sarco doesn't care it just cruises right through like the water isn't even there. For resource runs in the swamp biome nothing beats it ngl you can gather rare flowers and mushrooms and leech blood and stuff like that without ever getting off your mount and the Sarco's grab attack one shots leeches and meganeuras which is so satisfying. I love watching those stupid bugs just disappear like they never even existed. Boom.
For water cave exploration the Sarco is solid but not the best it'll get the job done for early water caves but against the really tough stuff like high level megalodons and dunks you want a Basilo or a Mosa think of the Sarco as your water cave starter mount use it to learn the cave layouts then upgrade later I mean you could try pushing deeper but your mileage may vary. Because I've definitely lost a few sarcos being overconfident in caves I shouldn't have been in tbh sometimes you just get greedy and the game punishes you for it. Hard.
In PvP the Sarco has a specific niche water base defense and ambush tactics park a few high level Sarcos around your water pen and they'll shred anyone trying to swim in the grab attack is especially nasty in PvP because you can drag players off their mounts and drown them which is honestly one of the most satisfying things you can do in this game it's not the meta pick for big tribe wars but for small tribe defense and guerrilla tactics a bred Sarco line can be surprisingly effective. And I've seen whole raids fall apart because someone's sarco grabbed their best player and dragged them into the deep water and honestly watching someone panic as they get pulled under is maybe the best feeling this game has to offer imo. Damn right.
Pro Tips
Here's a trick most people don't know the Sarco's grab attack works on tamed creatures too so if you're getting raided and you see an enemy on a small or medium mount near water grab their tame and drag it underwater the panic this causes is absolutely worth it even if you don't kill the mount you've separated the rider from their dino and that's often enough to turn a fight tbh. This one trick has saved my base more times than I can count and I'm not even exaggerating. It's kind of my secret weapon at this point. Yeah.
For leveling your Sarco I've found that melee and health are the obvious picks but don't sleep on oxygen yeah it seems redundant since Sarco already has 800 base oxygen but the thing is oxygen also affects your swim speed a Sarco with 2000 oxygen is noticeably faster underwater and that speed matters when you're chasing down fleeing players or escaping a Mosa who knows maybe you'll discover some weird speed breakpoint that nobody's documented yet. I mean probably someone has but I haven't seen it anywhere. Anyway it's worth experimenting with or whatever.
Oh and one more thing Sarcos lay eggs surprisingly fast compared to other carnivores if you're running low on kibble and need a quick egg farm a pair of Sarcos in a water pen will produce eggs at a decent rate not as fast as Dodos obviously but way more useful eggs since Sarco eggs make Regular Kibble and that's always useful for taming other stuff and all that. I literally have a whole water pen dedicated to sarco egg farming at this point and it's honestly saved me so much time on other tames. So good.
Common Mistakes
The classic newbie Sarco mistake is trying to passive tame one while other wild dinos are around and I've literally done this myself more times than I want to admit Sarcos are aggressive and will fight anything that gets close if a piranha or coelacanth swims by mid tame the Sarco might aggro on it and mess up your feeding rhythm so clear everything in a decent radius before you start I usually kill all fish and other sarcos within render distance basically if it moves and it's not the sarco you're taming kill it kinda ruthless I know but that's just how it goes. Trust me.
Another mistake is leveling the Sarco purely for combat and wondering why it can't carry anything the base weight is terrible like worse than you'd expect for a creature this size and I mean it's honestly kind of ridiculous how little it can carry if you plan on using it for resource runs at all you need to put some levels into weight even just 5 to 10 points makes a huge difference trust me on this one I learned it the hard way you load up on swamp resources and suddenly you can't move and then something attacks you and you're just screwed. Yep.
And don't get cocky with the Sarco in deep water yes it's amphibious yes it has good HP but it's not a deep sea creature Sarcos get shredded by Mosas and high level Plesios and it's not even close if you're going into the deep ocean bring a proper water mount the Sarco is for swamps and rivers and coastal areas stay in your lane and it'll serve you well. But push your luck and you'll be swimming back to your body with nothing but regret I've been there and honestly it sucks so much especially when you lose a really good saddle and all your gear etc. The worst.